The Tides of Time
by altiversewatcher
Summary: Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack meets someone that will change his life forever
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
  
Disclaimers: Pirates of the Caribbean aren't mine. Just writing nonprofit fanfiction. The usual.  
  
~~~  
  
"Captain!" One of the crew yelled out as they finished killing the last survivor of the boat they were pillaging. The others were stabbing the corpses a few more times, either out of psychotic glee or paranoia.   
  
"Wadda we do with 'er?" asked the crewmember with three prominent scars on his face. He stabbed his sword into the deck, emitting a loud 'thwong' as the metal reverberated at the force. The captain's eyes narrowed as he studied the ship from the main boom with the main sail billowing behind him. His black cape mimicked the sail, fluttering grandiosely behind him.   
  
The Captain rubbed his covered chin, pondering as intricate plans formed in his head. But his contemplation could not be seen behind his covered face. Rumors said that he had horrible scars and burns from a flaming fore boom that landed on his face during one of the lootings. No one knew the truth except for Old Marley, the ship's second in command, but he was too scared of him to reveal the truth anyways.   
  
"Clean her up. You know the drill." The Captain ordered in a low monotonous voice."  
  
A few of the crewmembers hesitated at the order.   
  
"What is it?" The Captain asked impatiently.  
  
Bannacker, the boatswain that always wore the bright blue bandana, asked timidly, "What's so special 'bout this one 'ere? We usually just burn 'em down."  
  
The Captain folded his arms, "Are you questioning my order?"  
  
Bannacker backed up bit, "N-no sir.., cleaning up sir. Sorry, didn't mean that."  
  
"Good." The captain replied, then turned to the blonde haired main on the forecastle deck. "Colin! Gather up half the crew to stay on that ship."  
  
Then the captain turned towards Old Marley and held a hand out, "If you would Ol' mate and guide the Defiant. I shall go head the…." The Captain paused to take a look at the foreign name on the escutcheon of the other ship. "… Messenger."  
  
Old Marley nodded under his trihat and waddled with his protruding fat stomach towards the ship wheel. Satisfied, the Captain easily swung over and landed on the Messenger and headed towards its ship wheel.  
  
About half an hour later, the crew finally finished washing down the deck and tossing out the bodies. Well, with a small ceremony. Just in case.   
  
The crew split up into two, half on the Defiant and half on the Messenger. The Captain glanced down at his crew and smirked as he turned to Colin, "Not bad Colin. Come along. We'll be in the Caribbean in two days. We'll have to keep an eye out."  
  
"Why is that sir?"  
  
"Black Pearl has been sighted near there not too long ago. I heard when we docked in one of the colonies."  
  
Colin nodded, "Should I warn the crew?"  
  
"No, there will be no need for that."  
  
"But what if they attack us?" Colin asked, expressing his worry.  
  
Cold crystal blue eyes regarded Colin nonchalantly as the captain pulled a compass out of his satchel on his belt. "I'm hoping for a peaceful confrontation."  
  
Colin still squirmed a little as he sighed, "we're going to be like sitting ducks if they come after us, this isn't a war ship."  
  
The captain pointed down at the hatch with the board covering each canon, "Then what are those?"  
  
Colin looked at the ship, confused, "but isn't this merchant ship?"  
  
"This one of the newer models made by the Spanish, after being pillaged so many times by pirates and the English, eventually, they started arming their ships."  
  
"But why didn't they attack us?"   
  
"Untrained crew. Didn't notice how small of crew they had? And how this ship has no merchandise on it? They must have had a rendezvous midway with another ship and transferred most of the crew over, leaving only a few. A safety precaution they're taking nowadays."  
  
Colin nodded as began to understand the situation. "…But still, why did you…"  
  
"Don't you think you've asked enough questions for now?" the Captain cut him off.   
  
Colin worked his mouth mutely and then bit down on his lip in embarrassment, "Sorry sir."  
  
The Captain laughed lowly and hit Colin on the back amiably, "Why don't you go down into the storage and see what food they've left for us."  
  
Like all pirates, Colin's eyes brightened at the mention of food and he scurried down the forecastle deck and into the hold.   
  
~~~  
  
Jack Sparrow narrowed his eyes as he watched Brutus yelling at one of the men, threatening to throw him over deck. "Not again…"  
  
Brutus was perhaps a worse second in command than Barbossa had been, he was larger, meaner, had a worse temperament. Not to mention, he tried to rape Anamaria once, which was perhaps violating the top ten rules on his ship. No one was allowed to touch Anamaria. She was one the vital crew members.  
  
The only reason why he even made him second was because he could easily rouse the crew into fighting. Which came very handy when attacking other ships, he was good morale when they were fighting. But that was about it…perhaps, he would need a new second in command soon. Brutus' hothead behavior was going to get him killed.   
  
Jack sighed as he put on his hat and came out of the captain's cabin, "What's this all about?"  
  
"This idiot can't tell from his left from this right! I told him to move the…"  
  
"So when did you do this?" Jack asked the shivering, frightened man.  
  
"Just a few seconds ago sir."  
  
Jack rolled his eyes, "Brutus, we can't be that far off course, just look at the compass and redirect us."  
  
Brutus made a low growl as he glared at the man. "I still think…"  
  
"Well what you think doesn't matter, does it? I'm still the Captain and you're second in command. If I don't want you killing off my crew, you aren't going to."  
  
Then jack turned to the man, "Look, I can't just let you off. Here, cleaning duties for the week alright?"  
  
The man nodded gratefully and dashed off towards the closet holding the scrubs.   
  
Jack frowned at Brutus, "Don't go around threatening MY men. If you want a crew that you can kill anytime you want. Get your own ship. Meanwhile, my ship, my rules."  
  
Cont…  
  
Note: this story is going to take a while for me to write. First of all because I'm writing another fic at the same time and Second of all, I don't want to half-ass the story. I want to get the terminology right and the names write and some of the history right. So you're gonna have to bear with me.   
  
Feedback please? 


	2. Chapter 2

by bitmaxmouse  
  
Disclaimers: Pirates of the Caribbean don't belong to me.  
  
~~~  
  
'Colin has hit the jackpot,' the Captain thought as he saw the men cheering at the sight of so much food. 'Oh wait… the term jackpot probably doesn't exist yet…no casinos. Heh'  
  
"Good job Colin!" The Captain said as he walked down clapping his hands, "It looks like we're going to have a feast tonight! Eat up men and enjoy! You deserved it!"  
  
The men cheered as they raised their fists.   
  
The Captain pointed at the Defiant, "Why don't we dock side by side with the Defiant. We'll bring over the other half of the crew and we'll feast."  
  
The men nodded in agreement. Even though pirates hated sharing, the crew had become brother-like companions without much grudge against each other. The captain had chosen less inflammatory men to be part of his crew for that reason, they were less likely to hoard everything to themselves and they would be more loyal to each other and to the captain. Thus making a more effective group when attacking other ships.   
  
Eventually, after tying the two ships together on the peaceful sea, the other half of the crew spent came over eagerly at the prospect of fresh and large supplies of food. For the rest of the night the men sang, ate and drank merrily.   
  
The captain had eaten and drank with the men earlier, but as they started to fall asleep from the alcohol. He eventually slipped out of the dinning area and spent the night at the helm, looking at the Defiant. It would be his last days looking at her…  
  
~~~  
  
They encountered the Black Pearl much sooner than they thought. In fact, they encountered her as they approached the Caribbean Sea. The captain gave a deep sigh as he pulled out his telescope and spotted the black sails with a few holes in it. Colin was in a sweaty mess, and so were the other men.   
  
The Captain called out to the men on the Messenger. "Crew, I want you to dock with the Defiant and go back. I don't want you fighting the Black Pearl, not today! Once, you get on, start heading off in the other direction as fast as you can. Understood? I want you to take the southern current and dock at Panama."  
  
The men nodded and started to scurry around and they shipped extra food and supplies onto the Defiant. They finished in around ten minutes, which was pretty fast. But then they didn't really want to encounter the Black Pearl. As the last man walked across to the Defiant, the captain signal for them to pull away the board.   
  
"Captain?!" Randy, the ebony haired Asian they had picked up in Singapore asked.  
  
The Captain pointed at the rope. "Don't worry I'll swing over."  
  
The crew let out a breath of relief and quickly pulled the board away. Two of the men stood near the edge, ready to catch the Captain as the distance between the ships started to grow larger, "Come on cap'n!" One of them called out.   
  
The Captain closed his eyes and then opened them, taking one last look at his ship and crew. Then he let go of the rope and let it swing over uselessly.   
  
The crew started to scream, "Captain!"  
  
"What are you doing!"   
  
"Are you mad!"  
  
" NO! You'll be killed!"  
  
The captain waved at Old Maley, "Hurry, I can't hold them off for long, Old Maley, you're in charge now."  
  
Old Maley look immensely sad and terrified, "But Alexand-r… -der!"  
  
The Captain shook his head. "You'll be fine James! You're a good captain! I'm handing leadership over to you. Now git! No going back for stragglers!"  
  
Old Maley nodded and called out to the forlorn crew, "Come on all of you, lets get out of here, Captain has bought us a lot of time, don't want to waste his sacrifice for nothing."   
  
~~~~  
  
Cont...  
  
Feedback please? 


	3. Chapter 3

by bitmaxmouse  
  
disclaimers: Pirates of the Caribbean don't belong to me.  
  
~~~~~  
  
Jack watched the crew float away on the Defiant, leaving a solitary figure, who obviously was the captain, on board the abandoned ship. "Curious…" He mumbled.   
  
It didn't look like the crew had malevolently left the captain on the ship to die, it looked like they didn't want the captain to go almost as if… as if… the captain was a diversion.   
  
"That ship is ripe for the pickin' no one on it." Brutus gleefully commented next to Jack.   
  
Jack nodded as the beads in his hair jingled. He could tell from Brutus's look, he actually took his earlier words into consideration. He wanted that empty boat. It was actually a pretty good boat too. A large ship, since it was a merchant ship, but it also was swift and had weapons on it like a war ship.  
  
Jack subtly glanced over at Brutus. He was practically salivating. Jack decided to mess with him. "It looks like the other ship is abandoning it, "We should go after the other ship, whatever good was on this ship has probably been taken away."  
  
Brutus scowled, "No! I mean… It's already going to be far away by the time we get there, see how they're heading towards the swells."  
  
Jack nodded, he had already noticed them in the distance. "But that is the ship, Defiant. Headed by they oh so mysterious leader, who has no name. I would like to challenge him. I heard that his fighting skills are unmatched."  
  
Brutus snorted. "Just old wives tales, I bet I can beat him easily."  
  
Jack raised an eyebrow. It was true that Brutus was quite powerful, if you counted fighting skills as only brute strength. He had no finesse though, and he only fought with his emotions. Which would be dangerous if he ever came across a skilled opponent.   
  
~~~~  
  
It didn't take them long to reach the Messenger. The captain stood at the helm, unfazed by the sight of the Black Pearl. The crewmembers of the Black Pearl leaned over and looked at the masked captain curiously. His entire face was covered by gauze, leaving only his eyes to be seen, he wore a deep blue bandana that covered his hair. His garment was also unique. He wore a large midnight blueish-black cape (or perhaps it was a cloak) which covered his entire body and reached down to his ankles, they were pinned up by two gold pins on each shoulder, adorn with a large ruby on each. Only glimpses of his clothes and his black leather boots could be seen each time the wind blew the cloak to the side.   
  
Jack swiftly climbed up onto the railing, on the side of his ship, while holding onto one of the ropes.   
  
The Captain was the first to speak, "I offer you a proposition Jack Sparrow!"  
  
Jack raised his eyebrows, interested, "Alright. I'm listening."  
  
"If I fight one of you till first blood, if you win, I'll hand over this ship. She's one of the new Spanish merchant warships you've been hearing about. Pristine condition, and she sails faster than the original Interloper ."  
  
The comment peaked Jack's interest even more, for he had been on the Interloper to help Boostrap's son save his love. "Is that so? How would you know?"  
  
"Overhead when I docked near Spain a few months ago. Talked to some of the ship makers."  
  
Jack smirked, "Alright, I'll bite. And what if you win?"  
  
"I get to be part of your crew, no hassles."  
  
"And what of the ship?"  
  
"Well, if I become part of your crew, it's yours then."  
  
"So, there's no point in me fighting."  
  
"…Unless you have some onboard who is eager to start their own company."  
  
Jack mentally sighed, 'five, four, three, two, …"  
  
"I accept your challenge!" Brutus shouted as he flexed his muscles, thinking that it could intimidate his opponent. He tossed a rope to the Captain.  
  
The Captain tilted his head, amused and accepted the rope. Then he tossed another rope over from his ship, "Someone tie her up."  
  
Duncan nodded as Jack looked at him and pointed towards the Messenger with this thumb. He quickly swung over with a rope in hand and tied the Messenger to the Black Pearl.   
  
Meanwhile, the Captain brushed himself as he pulled a katana out of his sheath. Jack 'hmmed', "Interesting. Have you been to Asia?"   
  
The Captain looked up at Jack with amused eyes, "What do you think?"  
  
"Shut up both of you. I want that ship." Brutus cut in, earning a very annoyed glance from the Captain.  
  
"You should learn to keep that temper of your under control boy."  
  
"I'm not boy," Brutus hissed.  
  
"Really because your maturity is about the same level as one."  
  
Brutus let out an angry yell as he stomped over to where he kept his weapons and pulled out an enormous saber.   
  
The Captain raised his right hand, clasping the katana, over his head as his left hand reached out to guide him.  
  
Next, to Jack, Lee, a Chinese man that Jack had picked in up Canton, whistled lowly, impressed. Jack took a few steps forward and whispered, "He any good?"  
  
"Perfect stance. Not to mention, the starting move is for one of the more advanced techniques. He's good and I have a feeling that he's got more up his sleeve…"  
  
The Captain waited and allowed Brutus to lunge forward, the quickly watched Brutus's body movement. 'He's going towards the left.' The Captain quickly spun towards the right. 'Now down.' Brutus started to slash down, but the Captain quickly blocked him and broke contact of their swords.   
  
For the next few moments, the Captain played defense and easily parried each thrust. Already, one could see who had the upper-hand. The Captain was easily blocking each messy lunge with a touch here and there, barely making excessive movements.  
  
Jack whispered to Lee, "What's he doing now?"  
  
"He's actually watching how Brutus fights, that's why he won't take the offense. Anyways, his rapier (cloak) is good defense. Even if Brutus manages to stab him, he can always move under the cloak and avoid the sword, it takes some of the force out of the thrust and gives him time to move. Now that's interesting, he's got all sorts of techniques."  
  
Lee pointed out the Captain making several of his moves, "There, that's a move you use in Italian fencing…. That's Japanese … English… French… German… Spanish and street fighting… Where did this guy learn all this?"  
  
Jack smirked, "I think he's showing off."  
  
Lee smiled back. "No, I know he's showing off. But these people here don't know it, they don't know sword fighting quite like you or me, they just think slice, dice and kill. It's more than that."  
  
Suddenly the Captain made an Affondo (extended lunge).   
  
Lee whispered to as he tilted his head sideways, "It's going to be over soon."  
  
Brutus, pulled back and to the left, and then tried to lunge forward, but the Captain, already familiar with Brutus's actions, predicted this. He quickly took his rapier and wrapped it around the saber, pulling it away from Brutus.   
  
Brutus, completely caught off guard, let go of his sword. Which then allowed for the Captain to toss the sword into the air and catch it with his left hand. Brutus held up his hand and began laughing, "Yeah, but no first blood."  
  
The Captain drew back and pointed at the left side of Brutus's neck, "Then what's that?"  
  
"What the hell?!" Brutus yelled as he felt his own clammy metallic blood dripping down his neck.   
  
The Captain laughed softly and headed towards Jack. The crew made way for the Captain in awe of his skill and how easily he brought down Brutus. "Well, it looks like the boat is- "  
  
The loud sound of a gunshot ran throughout the boat. The Captain stumbled forward gasping while holding his injured right shoulder.   
  
"…It's mine!" Brutus yelled with a musket in his hand, "The goddamn ship is mine!"  
  
The Captain quickly switched his blade from right hand to left hand and spun around, "You bloody idiot!"  
  
With that, the Captain cleanly decapitated Brutus before he could make another sound or movement. His large body made a sickening thud as it landed on the ground and the head rolled off of the deck and into the water.   
  
With this last energy spent, the Captain groaned and collapsed where he stood.   
  
~~~  
  
Late that night Matelot, the ship's physician, finally came out of the Captain's cabin. Jack, who was sitting at the helm tapped on Moises's shoulder and let him take over and he went down to check on their guest. "How is he?"  
  
Matelot looked a little shaken, "…He's… stabilized. I pulled the bullet out, cleaned up his shoulder and sewed it up. He probably collapsed from exhaustion, he woke up once while I was sewing him up. I could tell that he was in pain, but he was too tired to speak, so he fell asleep again."  
  
Jack put a hand on Matelot's shoulder, "You don't look so good, what'd wrong?"  
  
Matelot tilted his head towards the captain's cabin, "Why don't I show you."  
  
Jack quietly followed Matelot to where the Captain was lying… with the gauze on his face off. Or should he say 'her'.  
  
"He's a woman." Jack commented, slightly surprised that a woman could be that skilled. But then he remembered his encounter with Anne, who also dressed like a male. "Well… I'm surprised and not… I mean, Anne's a pirate right?"  
  
Matelot nodded and then shrugged, "But Anne can't cleanly decapitate a man like Brutus with her left hand."  
  
"So she's strong."  
  
"The Defiant is one of the only ships that comes close to the Black Pearl's record in pillaging ships."  
  
"And she's a good pirate."  
  
Jack glanced down as he studied he soft olive skin and bow shaped lips,"… and she's pretty too isn't she?"  
  
Matelot raised an eyebrow, "I have feeling that she could be dangerous, I'd keep myself in my pants if I were you."  
  
Jack smirked at Matelot as he laid down next to the Captain, "Well, these are my quarters and I do need to sleep."  
  
Matelot rolled his eyes and walked out of the captain's cabin. "… don't come crying to me…"  
  
After Matelot shut the door, Jack quickly turned his attention back to the pretty sleeping girl, she was a bit exotic with her black hair and slight Asian looks and at the same time, he could remember those piercing blue eyes, "Like Sapphires." He murmured.  
  
Then he looked down at her soft round breasts and smiled to himself, 'She wont know if I cop a feel.' Quietly, he lowered his hands down to her chest.   
  
When suddenly, sharp blue eye opened and a hand lashed out to catch his hand, "That's not a good idea." She whispered in a deep soft voice.  
  
The last thing Jack remembered was the sight of a fist knocking him out.   
  
~~~~  
  
The next morning, bright light shining in from one of his windows shined on his face and he whimpered pitifully as he turned around. However, he forgot about the bruise on his upper right cheek.   
  
"Ow!" Jack yelped as he sat up rubbing his cheek.   
  
A snicker came from the other side of the cabin and he quickly turned his head to the left. And there sat the Captain comfortably in his chair while reading one of the books he used as a paperweight for his map.   
  
Jack blinked a few times and walked over. He looked around the room and pulled up a chair from the dining table and sat next to the Captain. "Now that wasn't very nice last night luv."  
  
"Well, I don't like it when men molest me in my sleep…" The Captain smirked and mimicked him, "…luv."  
  
Jack winced, "You're a strange bird you know that? Most women would be throwing themselves at me."  
  
"Probably. It's most likely they're trying to get into your pants."  
  
Jack smiled, "Well I am well endowed."  
  
"… for your money."  
  
At that comment Jack's face fell, "Now it's not just that…"  
  
"Really…" The Captain stopped paying attention and seemed to be immensely engrossed in his book. Jack's eye twitch, annoyed at her nonchalance.  
  
Jack sighed and then took the Captain book away, "Okay, we didn't start off right. How about I apologize for last night."  
  
The Captain thought about it and shrugged, "Sure."  
  
"Although, I still think you should be flattered…"  
  
"…Keep talking and you're going to wake up next week."  
  
Jack's eyes widened, "Okay .. okay, forget that last comment. I'm sorry."  
  
Jack then help out his hand, "Jack Sparrow."  
  
The Captain smirked and shook his hand, "Alexandria Kauffman."  
  
Jack quirked his head to the side, "But you look Asian."  
  
"Half."  
  
"Ah~ that would make… perfect sense." Jack blinked a few times. 'Stupid Jack, you're such an idiot!'  
  
Alexandria watched Jack as he mentally lashed at himself, "You done yet?"  
  
Jack's eyes widened as he laughed nervously, she was seriously putting him on edge, "Y-yeah. I was just… never mind. So um, Alexandria when would you like to meet the crew?"  
  
Alexandria walked over to the table and started to cover her face, "Alex. Oh and in a moment."  
  
"Why are doing that? I mean, we do have a female crewmember."  
  
Alex took pulled up her sleeve and showed him a strange tattoo of a sword in between a Greek gold wreath, "Recognize that?"  
  
"That's the Order of Augustus." Jack said slowly, "You're an assassin. But what are you doing out on sea?"  
  
"I'm actually being hunted down by the Order of Augustus. I used to be one of them. But I failed one of my assignments, got involved with the target and couldn't kill him. So in the end, they still killed him, except now they're after me too. I've been running for a while. There's actually only two remaining members left, I've almost outlived them all. Just need to wait a little longer."  
  
"Why are you showing me this." Jack frowned, "I'm a pirate, you can't trust me."  
  
Alex threw Jack a strange smile, "But you see, I can trust you. And you'll find out why soon enough."   
  
~~~  
  
Cont…  
  
Feedback please? 


	4. Chapter 4

By bitmaxmouse  
  
Disclaimers: Pirates of the Caribbean are not mine.   
  
In the end, he respected Alex's wishes and did not reveal her gender to the rest of the crew. During the day, she kept her disguise on while helping around the men. She was quiet, efficient and never complained for a moment. But at the same time, she never spoke. Which perhaps unnerved the other men, since they were a jovial crew that liked singing and drinking their hearts out while … singing some more. Alex's silence kept them on edge. Like she was judging and studying them. They were a pretty smart crew. After all, they saw her take down Brutus within minutes without breaking a sweat or feeling remorse.  
  
When one of the men asked Alex about what he thought after he killed Brutus. Alex shrugged and said, "What's done is done."  
  
Perchance, the cold, ineffectual comment made her more frightening than ever. She didn't feel guilty when she killed Brutus, but neither did she revel in it. Emotion was a rarity around her.   
  
However, there was one person on the crew who had managed to get closer to Alex than Jack Sparrow. Unsurprisingly enough, it was Anamaria; the only female member of the crew.  
  
Alex had first approached her when it was Anamaria's turn to peel the potatoes for dinner that night. Alex had promptly seated herself in a short tripod seat and picked up a knife to help with the peeling. For the first dozen potatoes, the two were silent as they nimbly worked their knives.  
  
Eventually, it was Alex who broke the silence. "How do the men treat you?"  
  
Anamaria froze mid-peeling; shocked that Alex had spoken to her. "U-uh, umm… well. They treat me with respect, like a crew member… Everything was fine, until Jack brought on Brutus."  
  
Alex tilted her slowly, as if she was slowly contemplating what Anamaria said. "Go on."  
  
"He tried to take advantage of me one night."  
  
Alex snorted, "Why did Jack hire an idiot like that anyways?"  
  
Anamaria's eyes widened again, amazed that Alex had shown an opinion and criticized the captain. "I-I'm not too sure. Well, I mean, I know Brutus was pretty strong."  
  
"… But he kept getting in fights?" Alex finished.  
  
Anamaria nodded, still watching Alex with caution. Alex tossed another peeled potato into the wooden bowl on the kitchen table. "Good thing I came along huh?"  
  
Anamaria shrugged and then nodded, "He never followed Jack's rules…" Anamaria gulped quietly, "I've been sleeping better lately."  
  
Alex nodded, "That's good."  
  
Alex reached over and took the last potato in the basket, "Why don't you take a break. I'll finish this up."  
  
"Uh.. Oh.. .okay…" Anamaria nodded dumbly, still stunned and nervous. "Thank you."  
  
Alex waved her hand, indicating that Anamaria could go and that she was alright.  
  
~~~~  
  
"I found Anamaria sketching earlier. I thought she was supposed to peel the potatoes." Jack commented as he walked up to Alex, who was standing under the forestay sail, right at the fatter end of the bow. She stood steadily in her spot, feet wide apart, unfazed by the large waves that the ship was traveling over.  
  
Alex didn't turn around, but still spoke, "I was bored, looking for something to do."  
  
Jack raised a brow to study Alex, but when Alex made no subtle underlying shift, he shrugged and looked towards the left side of the boat with his hands behind his back. "You know, the men are talking. They're sort of scared of you."  
  
Alex shrugged nonchalantly. Causing Jack to sigh, "Oh, and also they're talking…"  
  
"About…"  
  
"Why you sleep in my cabin."  
  
"If you don't wa…"  
  
"No no, it's not that. It's just… they're talking."  
  
Alex turned around, but didn't face Jack, as she headed down the stairs toward the hold, she stopped next to Jack, still facing forward. "Then tell them that I'm taking over second in command."  
  
"But…"  
  
"After all, I did kill Brutus didn't I? No one would question your decision, especially after they saw how I cut him down." Alex's voice was slightly darker now, with a slight vibrating tone. And knowing that Alex was a woman, the dusky voice made him difficult to think, or in this case, decide…on his own.   
  
Jack nodded as he licked his lips, "Alright."   
  
Meanwhile a part of him gave an exasperated sigh about how pathetic he was.   
  
Alex smirked under her disguise. "Good."  
  
~~~  
  
It was a bit disturbing how insightful Alex was. Just as she had said, the men accepted her new position: no questions, no complaints. It wasn't until later that Jack realized that the men were afraid of suffering the same fate as Brutus. Damn, he kept forgetting that Alex was a guy to the men. Not a female.   
  
Alex accepted the position with the nod of a head and a 'Thank you'. She didn't gloat like Brutus and Barbossa had when they received their promotion. She didn't immediately threaten the men, abusing her power off the bat. Instead she pulled a map from behind her back and pinned a location around the British colonies (also known as America).   
  
She announced loudly to the men, "While I was docked around New Amsterdam, I heard news about a large shipment of Indigo and cotton coming out of Virginia. If we start north now, we should be able to come across the ship about half a day before it can spot land."  
  
The men started to cheer as they started for their stations to turn the ship north. Jack looked at Alex, wide-eyed, he didn't even expect for her to pull something like that. If the looting went well, the men would have immense faith in her. This would work to her advantage, especially if her gender were accidentally revealed. Making so that Jack had no advantage over her whatsoever.  
  
'Clever. She's very clever." Jack thought as he stroked his beard.   
  
Alex turned to Jack as he was contemplating Alex's plan. She watched him with piercing 'don't mess with me' eyes that made him blink and turn away. '… and intimidating too.'  
  
~~~~  
  
Late that night Jack found Alex keeping watch while sitting on one of the booms, the gauze covering her face was slightly loose so that her right cheek and nose were also visible. But she made sure that she didn't show too much, just in case.   
  
Jack quietly snuck behind her, hoping to scare her. He let out a 'BOO!' as he grabbed her around her waist. Alex jumped slightly, causing Jack to smirk, 'So I did get her.'  
  
When suddenly, Alex reached down and pulled his head up by his bandana.   
  
"Revenge is going to be a bitch." She hissed as her hold tightened and then shoved him back onto his butt.   
  
A sinking feeling settled into Jack's stomach, he really shouldn't have done that.  
  
~~~  
  
Jack waited around for 5 days and nothing happened. His nervous energy was at an all time high as he anticipated Alex's revenge. Every time she passed by him, he watched her like a frightened cat.   
  
When it finally happened, he vowed never to mess with Alex again.   
  
He had woken up cold and thought Alex's revenge was taking his sheets. Jack shook his head and snickered, "She was just bluffing."  
  
But as he shifted, he realized that he wasn't lying on a soft mattress. Jack eyes suddenly widened and he abruptly sat up.   
  
Only to find that he was sitting on a VERY small raft… in the middle of the ocean and the Black Pearl was sailing away in the distance.  
  
"SHIT!!!!!" Jack screamed.  
  
Cont…  
  
Note: sore from Warped Tour. Urg… typing hurts… 


	5. Chapter 5

by bitmaxmouse  
  
Disclaimers: Pirates of the Caribbean does not belong to me.  
  
~~~  
  
He was absolutely, totally, completely pissed. This was worse than when Barbossa stranded him on that island. He didn't have run this time and he could be floating forever, dying within days due to thirst.   
  
That bitch.   
  
~~~  
  
At first the men had looked horrified at Alex's suggestion when they told them how she was getting revenge on Jack.   
  
But eventually, just like Jack, they gave in.   
  
~~~~  
  
About an hour after Jack woke up he finally stopped crying (not that he'd admit it) and brooding he realized that the Black Pearl was still pretty close by.   
  
Jack's eyes suddenly widened as he cleared his head and gathered his bearings. He looked down at the small raft only to realize that it was … moving. He leaned forward cautiously and then looked up at the Black Pearl.   
  
And there, Alex sat on the boom, swishing her legs side to side like a child who had gotten a treat .In her hand was a rope that she flicked back and forth like the tale of a cat. The other end of the loop led into the water. If she hadn't been wearing her disguise, he could have sworn she would be grinning like a loon.   
  
Jack gaped, indignant that she had pulled such an impressive prank on him… and managed to have him sobbing like a pansy for half an hour. Jack stood up precariously on his small raft, arms akimbo, "All right you win!" He yelled as loud as he could.   
  
Alex hopped off of the boom and signaled for the crew to come over and pull the raft in.   
  
Once Jack had gotten back into the captain's cabin, he finally let out a shuddering sigh of relief that he had been holding in. Then he rushed over and leaped into his bed, as he closed his eyes and shook his head.   
  
He vaguely wondered whether he should start tying himself to his bed from now on… just in case Alex felt sadistic again.   
  
His last thoughts as he drifted off into his nap were, "I still can't figure out how she moved me without waking me up."  
  
~~~  
  
A week after the incident, Jack finally stopped walking on eggshells and stopped being so bitter towards the crew after he found out at they all had a hand in this. He managed to avoid Alex for most of the week, only coming across her at night when she went to sleep in the hammock at the other end of the captain's quarters.   
  
Finally, one night after his evening watch, he found her sleeping face down in his bed without her disguise on. Jack sighed and sat down next to her.  
  
"Luv, you do know you're in the wrong bed right?"  
  
Alex let out a soft whine, muffled by the pillow, "Hammock hurts…"  
  
"Sore back?"  
  
Alex nodded and clutched the pillow tightly.   
  
Jack quirked his lips to the side, feeling sorry for the girl, everyone else had a sort of bunk bed in the lower areas. And all the beds were filled up, so there was only an old hammock left for her. He unconsciously started to rub her back. Alex let out a happy sigh of gratitude.   
  
Alex turned her head to the side, no longer sleeping with her face pressing into the pillow, "I don't understand. How did Brutus sleep? If you don' have any other beds on the ship."  
  
Jack frowned, "Actually every night he just got drunk and passed out on the floor."  
  
Alex grumbled, "Figures…"  
  
Jack pressed down a bit on her lower back. Alex let out a soft moan, which actually sounded like a mewing cat. The word 'cute' flitted across Jack's mind, but he held his tongue. He wasn't THAT dumb.   
  
"Harder." Alex whispered.   
  
Jack swallowed a whimper, because Alex taking in that tone of voice just sort of dripped the promise of sex that was better than looting a ship and having sex at the same time.   
  
Jack cautiously moved around and sat on Alex's back thighs, making sure not to sit on her very nice tush.   
  
'Shut up!' Jack's mind screamed as his dirty mind mentally scrambled to the back corners of his mind, 'but my brain was so happy in the gutter…'  
  
Alex didn't move to hit him and she didn't tense, which was a very good thing. Because it meant that she wouldn't kill him… at the moment.   
  
Jack took several of the rings on his fingers and shoved them into his pockets. Jack closed his eyes for a few minutes, trying his best to calm down and remain neutral. Jack looked down at Alex's thin shirt that covered her back.  
  
'I can do this… really…' Jack thought, although he really didn't sound convinced.  
  
He started out slow with circle motions on the lower back, near the kidneys and then would move up to the area under the triangles of Alex's shoulder blades. Eventually he moved up through the channel between her shoulder blades and rubbed her shoulders gently, alternating between kneading them and circling them.   
  
Eventually Alex drifted to sleep and Jack stopped his ministrations. He arched his head a little to make sure that she was sleeping before he left. Jack reached over and tucked her soft ebony hair behind her ear and got off of her.   
  
'I guess I'll be sleeping on the hammock tonight.'  
  
However, that wasn't to be so, as Jack tried to walk towards the hammock, he met a bit of resistance, Alex had managed to grip tightly onto his sash while he was rubbing her back. Jack frowned, well, he could take off his sash, but then nothing would hold his pants up…   
  
Jack walked back and sat on the bed. "Luv, can you let go of my sash?"  
  
No answer. Jack's shoulders flopped down, "Just great. I can't even sleep on the floor either, not unless I want to be planted with my face against the bottom drawers under the bed."  
  
Finally Jack conceded and shifted Alex over, "Move over a bit luv, I hope you don't kill me in the morning for this."  
  
~~~  
  
Jack guessed that if he and Alex had managed to stay on opposite sides of the bed, he would less likely die today. But no, his subconscious was as sick evil bastard that just…   
  
'Well, the best I can hope for is that she'd be so embarrassed that she'd rush out of the captain's quarters.'  
  
Jack gulped; he was really quite in a predicament. Perhaps a perfect exampled to describe that situation would be if her were a mouse and found himself sleeping under a lioness's paw and now he'd have to find a way to escape without waking her.   
  
Alex whispered something incomprehensible and let out a soft moan as she nuzzled Jack's neck.   
  
'Screwed… so screwed!' Jack mentally screamed.  
  
He really should have expected the worst when he decided to sleep next to Alex the previous night. However, even 'the worst' couldn't match up this situation. His and Alex's legs were completely entwined, their lower halves completely pressed against each other. Alex had one arm folded in front of her, resting on his chest, the only thing keeping them from being wholly pressed against one another. But one thing that was worse… Alex's other hand… was cupped… on his ass.   
  
Jack started to hyperventilate as he started to think of a list of things he'd leave to his crewmates after he died.   
  
Suddenly Alex's eyes fluttered open and looked up at Jack. She quickly sat up, leaning on her right hand; however her left hand was still resting on his…   
  
Jack watched her, wide eyed, expecting a punch or a maiming…or …  
  
Then in the next instance, Alex snorted and burst out laughing. "ahahhaa… oh my god! You should see the look on your face! Priceless, totally priceless!"   
  
Jack deadpanned and let out a weak laugh.   
  
Finally, Alex calmed down to an occasional giggle. And finally she removed her… 'Wandering hand' from his behind.   
  
Alex looked at her hand, amused and then wiped it on Jack's shirt, as if she was drying her hand on a towel. Then she untangled her legs from his, scooted over and hopped off the bed.   
  
Alex sashayed over to the table and started to put her disguise on, "Thank you Jack, I slept very well last night." Alex's voice screamed of amusement.   
  
Jack gulped. "I-I don't know if that's such a good idea."  
  
"Your little friend disagrees with you."  
  
"My little friend?"  
  
"You know, the one that's taking the blood away from your brain."  
  
"Wh…" Jack started but he sudden stopped and squawked as he reached for his trihat and covered his lower torso.   
  
Alex hummed and headed out of the room.   
  
A few seconds later she popped her head back in, "Should I tell Duncan to bring up a tub of cold water?"  
  
Suddenly Jack let out a loud, pissed growl as he sent a large pillow flying towards the door. To his dismay, Alex managed to close the door just in time.  
  
~~~  
  
cont…   
  
note: I know.. I know… pg 13 skirting on R due to innuendo. But then the R rated ones in FF.net practically should be nc17 sometimes… so … I'm just going by FF.net standards… 


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